Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko is named for the flared tips to its toes, which have a fan-like arrangement of scales.

Geckos cannot blink, instead licking their eyes to keep them clean and moist.

Like other geckos, Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko has excellent climbing skills and can cling to almost any surface.

Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko uses calls to communicate.

Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko has yet to be classified by the IUCN.

Like other fan-footed geckos, Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko (Ptyodactylus ragazzi) is most notable for its expanded, flared toe tips, which have a fan-like arrangement of scales (3) (4). Geckos are outstanding climbers, and the bottom of each toe has specialised scales, known as ‘scansors’, made up of thousands of branched, hair-like projections, or ‘setae’. The combined surface area of these structures enables the gecko to cling to almost any surface (3) (5).

Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko has a grey body with patches of brown on the back. However, the colour and patterning of this species differs between males and females. Usually, the male Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko is larger and stockier than the female, but the female has more pronounced patterning than the male (6). In some parts of its range, Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko is reported to have a more creamy-orange body with large grey blotches, grey spots on the head, and a creamy-orange tail (7).

Like other geckos, Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko has soft skin, small scales, a relatively flattened body and a large head (3) (5) with a wide snout (6). The eyes lack eyelids, and instead are covered by a transparent ‘spectacle’. Geckos cannot blink, and instead have to lick their eyes to keep them clean and moist (3) (5) (8).

Many geckos use calls to communicate with each other (3) (5). As in related Ptyodactylus species, male Ragazzi’s fan-footed geckos may be particularly vocal (3).

Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko is widespread across northern parts of Africa, from Algeria, Libya and Egypt in the north, to Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Somalia in the south. Its range extends west as far as Mauritania (1).

Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko is reported to live on rocks or in rocky crevices in savanna. It may also inhabit buildings (2) (4).

Little specific information is available on the biology of Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko. However, like many other geckos it is an excellent climber, and as it is able to leap and climb so well it is not often sighted on the ground (2). This species is likely to be active at night (5) (7) and to feed on insects and other small invertebrates (5) (9).

Although Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko is reported to show territorial behaviour (6), other species of Ptyodactylus often live in groups (3) and lay their eggs at communal sites (3) (5). Two eggs are usually laid at a time (3) (5), either in gaps in the rock or under rocky overhangs (3).

Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko is not currently known to be facing any major threats. In areas where the climate and habitat are suitable for this species, its populations may reach quite high numbers (6).

Although its global conservation status has not yet been assessed, Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko has been classified as Least Concern (LC) in the Mediterranean region according to IUCN Red List criteria (10).

There are not known to be any specific conservation measures currently in place for this small reptile, but in Egypt Ragazzi’s fan-footed gecko is reported to occur in the Elba Protected Area, which holds a number of species that are not found in other parts of Egypt (11).

Bauer, A.M., Tchibozo, S., Pauwels, O.S.G. and Lenglet, G. (2006) A review of the gekkotan lizards of Bénin, with the description of a new species of Hemidactylus (Squamata: Gekkonidae). Zootaxa, 1242: 1-20.

Halliday, T. and Adler, K. (2002) The New Encyclopedia of Reptiles and Amphibians. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Baha El Din, S. (2006) A Guide to the Reptiles and Amphibians of Egypt. American University in Cairo Press, Cairo.